


Merry Kissmas, Magnolia Martinsson

by missdibley



Series: East Of The Sun, West Of The Moon [21]
Category: British Actor RPF, Tom Hiddleston - Fandom, Wallander (UK TV), Wallander (UK TV) RPF, Wallander - All Media Types
Genre: Christkindlmarket, Crush, Existing Relationship, F/M, Foreplay, Magnus Martinsson - Freeform, Magnus Martinsson AU, au magnus martinsson - Freeform, fort snuggums, middle aged
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-28
Packaged: 2019-02-19 14:59:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13126086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missdibley/pseuds/missdibley
Summary: Magnus suspects his eleven year old daughter Maggy of having a crush, and he isn’t sure how he feels about it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally rated E, I changed it to T. I couldn't find a way to make smut work in ended up being a fluffy family-centric piece.

One Friday night in December, Magnus Martinsson came out of his kitchen, a tray of piping hot pizza rolls held aloft in his right hand. He found his three year old son, Magnus Håkan Martinsson, lying on his tummy at the top of the stairs, head held up as he strained to hear what was going on downstairs in the basement.

Magnus nudged the little boy’s right foot with his own. “Håkan?”

Håkan looked up, a mischievous smile on his face. His mouth formed an O when he saw the pizza rolls. “Gimme!”

Magnus crouched down, holding out a roll for Håkan to take. “Just one, and then bed.”

Håkan sat up, cradling the pizza roll both of his hands. “Okay, Daddy.”

“And you have to tell me what you were doing lying there just now.”

Håkan blinked innocently. “Nuffin.” Before Magnus could press him, he popped the pizza roll in his mouth.

Magnus stood back up and smiled. “You want to come downstairs with me? Bring these to your sister and her friends?”

“Uh huh!” Håkan took Magnus’s outstretched hand, then walked with his father to the basement, where his eleven year old sister Maggy was having a sleepover.

Maggy and her guests — her best friend Katy Sheahan, their classmates Vanessa Nolan (the smartest girl in their grade), and Vanessa’s best friend Shelagh Vincent (the second nicest girl in their grade) — lolled on the floor on sleeping bags and pillows that had been thrown over some air mattresses that had been pushed together to make one large communal bed. It looked incredibly comfortable, so Håkan could not be blamed for running into the middle of it to jump around. In doing so he disrupted their card game, and upended a few empty snack bowls.

“Get out, Hake!” Maggy screeched. She swatted at her brother, who darted just out of reach with a cackle. When she saw her father, she sighed loudly. “DAD.”

“What?” Magnus played innocent, setting the pizza rolls down on a side table. “Are we interrupting?”

“Nuh-no, Mr. Martinsson” said Shelagh, her cheeks pink. “Wuh- we were just talking, Mr. Martinsson.”

“Well, Håkan just wanted to say goodnight.”

Magnus smiled when he saw his son scamper to his sister, grab her face, and plant a big wet kiss on her forehead. Maggy scowled, but didn’t push him away. In fact, she hugged him close around his tummy. Before letting go, she pressed her own lips to her brother’s cheek and blew a raspberry. Håkan squealed with delight, and when his sister commanded “Go to bed!” he instantly ran to Magnus’s side and took his father’s hand.

“Good night, Maggy.” Håkan smiled sweetly. “Bye!”

Maggy watched them, relieved to finally have the basement to herself. She caught Shelagh gazing after them, or after Magnus rather, with a goofy expression on her face. She elbowed Shelagh, rolling her eyes when the girl shrugged apologetically.

“Sorry, Maggy, it’s just…” Shelagh sighed. “Your dad.”

It was common knowledge among the girls in their class that Maggy had a hot dad. While all of their dads were old and corny and uncool and boring, Maggy’s classmates agreed that Magnus was hot. He looked younger than 46. His hair may have been lighter and not as long as when Maggy was born, but it was still a pleasant shade of dirty blond. Magnus’s blue eyes sparkled and did that nice crinkly thing whenever he smiled. Her friends knew better than to swoon over him when she was around, but every once in a while they slipped.

Maggy rolled her eyes, then threw a pizza roll at Shelagh. “Ew. He’s so gross.”

Vanessa popped a pizza roll into her mouth, then passed the tray to Katy. “Really? Like how?” She looked thoughtful. “My dad farts a lot. And when we call him out, he blames the dog.”

Maggy laughed. “No, it’s more like…” She huffed. “He and my mom, like, make out, all the time.” She took a pizza roll for herself. “And when I yell at them to stop, they just laugh and say ‘Oh Maggy!’ like that’s supposed to explain anything.”

“Aw, Mags.” Katy grinned at her best friend. “It’s cute. It’s like what he calls her… karsty?”

Maggy sighed. “No, it’s  _ käraste _ .”

Shelagh perked up, her eyes bright with interest. “What’s that mean?”

“It’s Swedish,” Maggy explained. “For sweetheart.”

“Oh!” Vanessa looked at Shelagh, the two of them grinning. “That’s so cuuuuuute!”

“I know, right?” Katy clapped her hands. “Hey, Mags — when you and Jaden start going together, are you gonna make him call you käraste, too?”

“SHUT UP!” Maggy threw a pillow at Katy, who threw it right back.

“Wait, Jaden Greenleaf?” Vanessa’s brown eyes grew wider behind her glasses. “Jaden from the boys school across the street Jaden?”

“Isn’t he in the seventh grade?” Shelagh’s mouth was agape. “Doesn’t his dad play for the Bulls?”

“No, he’s in sixth like us, but he’s the tallest kid in his class.” Maggy scowled. “And his dad just works for the Bulls, like in marketing or something.”

“Okay, so back to Jaden…” Vanessa began to play with her hair. “Begin at the beginning.”

Maggy sighed. “Why don’t we finish this game of gin rummy first?”

“NO!” Her friends exclaimed.

Upstairs on the second floor, Magnus was quietly closing the door to Håkan’s room behind him and walking down the hall to the bathroom. After brushing his teeth and splashing water on his face, he made his way to the master bedroom, got undressed and slipped into his own bed, next to his wife. Her eyes were closed but she was still awake, Magnus could tell. His feeling was confirmed when she rolled over, slipping a hand over his chest as she tucked her head into the crook of his neck.

“Everybody in bed?”

“Mmm, yes.” Magnus nuzzled the top of her head. “Håkan had a pizza roll before he went to bed.”

“Before or after brushing his teeth?” Halla smirked.

“Before, of course.”

“Good.” Halls snuggled into him.

“Käraste?”

“Yeah?”

“How old were you…”

“Hmm?”

“When did you have your first boyfriend?”

“Seventeen, love.” Halla yawned. “Late bloomer.”

“Ah.”

“When was your first girlfriend?”

“Fourteen,” replied Magnus. “She was…”

“Oh yeah. You told me.” Halla opened her eyes, then glanced up at Magnus’s face. “Bridget.”

“Birgit,” corrected Magnus.

Halla, who knew perfectly well that the girl’s name was Birgit, smirked to herself. “Right. That’s what I said.”

“Did you have crushes when you were younger?”

“Dude, I had nothing but crushes.” She reached out and touched the tip of Magnus’s nose with her finger.

“I think Maggy has a crush.” Magnus said this flatly, with no joy.

In contrast, Halla squealed with delight. “Really? What makes you say that? Did she say? Of course she wouldn’t, she’d rather die than talk to you about boys. Did something happen at Hake’s school? Oooh, I bet it did…”

“Halla, one question at a time.” Magnus cleared his throat, then took a moment. He stared at the ceiling fan, their blades turning slowly to circulate the warm air in the room. “When I picked up the kids, I found her with Håkan’s teacher just inside the school doors. They were talking to boy, a really tall one but he looked like he was Maggy’s age, and his dad.”

“So is this the crush?”

“I think so,” replied Magnus. “When I think about it, just the teacher and the dad talked. Maggy just sort of stared, then looked away when the boy spoke. After his dad prompted him to introduce himself.”

“What’s his name?” Halla asked. “The boy, I mean.”

“Jaden Greenleaf. His dad was Kenric Greenleaf. Works for the Bulls.”

“That sounds impressive.”

“The Bulls  are doing some promotional thing at Christkindlmarket tomorrow morning.”

“What a coincidence,” exclaimed Halla. “I promised the girls we’d go shopping there before the movies.”

Magnus stiffened. “When did that happen?”

“Oh, Maggy asked me right before we sat down to dinner. After we ordered the tacos for their supper.” She narrowed her eyes at Magnus. “What?”

“Jaden will be there,” Magnus guessed. “Same time, I reckon.”

“Okay, so we don’t have much time to pack up the girls and ship them off to a nunnery…”

“Käraste…” Magnus sighed. “I’m serious.”

“So Maggy and Jaden and about, I don’t know, a few thousand people will be standing around in the cold waiting for, I dunno, Benny The Bull to shoot t-shirts out of a cannon.”

“But she  _ likes _ him.”

“So?” Halla teased. “Once upon a time I liked a boy and look where that got me.”

“That’s different…”

“I would hope so,” muttered Halla. “Considering what we ended up doing on our first date and all.”

“Oh my god,” Magnus groaned.

“Do you think they’ll name their first child after one of us? You know, when they get married at 18?”

“Stop it, Halla,” moaned Magnus.

“Okay.” Halla slid her hand down his bare chest, letting it linger around his belly button. As Magnus inhaled, she began to tickle him. “Ha ha! You’re so ticklish!”

Magnus wriggled and squirmed away as best he could, but the bed was so warm and when Halla straddled him, her hands pinning his down by his head, her thighs felt so soft on his own legs.

“I have a crush, you know.” Halla leaned in, whispering in his ear. Magnus looked down, peeking down the low neck of her short nightgown. He could see her bare breasts, and when he did he licked his lips.

“Oh yeah?” Magnus growled.

“Yeah,” murmured Halla.

She released Magnus’s hands so she could run her hands down her body. She toyed with the hem of her nightgown, pulling it up over her hips. “His name’s Samuel Longfellow. You know the guy from the Revengers movies?”

“Minx!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus and Halla take the children to Christkindlmarket, where Maggy and Magnus once again meet Jaden Greenleaf.

Magnus insisted on carrying Håkan on the short walk from the Music Box Theatre to the holiday market at Wrigley. The little boy was getting taller every day but he enjoyed the attention, blowing raspberries into his father’s cheek as they marched along in the brisk December sunshine.

Walking beside them, Halla kept an eye on Maggy and her friends, who had run ahead in their excitement to get to Christkindlmarket. The girls sang songs from  _ White Christmas _ , the movie they had just seen, then giggled and gossiped. Adjusted the reindeer antler headbands Halla had surprised them with, and didn’t pay any sort of attention to Halla and Magnus and little Håkan.

When the girls arrived at the northwest corner of Waveland and Clark, they nearly stepped into the intersection when Magnus barked at them to stop.

“Girls! No running into the street.” The frown in his voice was matched to an actual frown on his face when Maggy turned back to look at her father.

“Da-ad.” She rolled her eyes, then blew her bangs out of her eyes. “We weren’t actually going to run into traffic.”

“Hmph.” Magnus looked left, and then right, nodding when he saw that that road was clear. “Okay,  _ now _ we cross.”

The girls made a show of being careful and cautious as they crossed, holding hands and exclaiming loudly that they were being so good. Of course, as soon as they got to the opposite corner, they screamed in delight then ran ahead. Magnus was about to yell again when Halla placed her hand in the crook of his arm and squeezed.

“Baby,” she said, quietly. “We’re almost there anyway. They won’t go in unless they know we can see them.”

Magnus nodded, then kissed the top of her head. He smiled at Håkan, who was now squirming in his arms. The little boy wanted to hop down and race ahead, tempted by the smell of roasted nuts and hot chocolate, schnitzel and chimney cakes. With a sigh, Magnus set him down on the sidewalk. “Håkan, hold hands with Mommy, okay?”

Håkan did as he was told, gripping tightly to each parent with his mittened hands, and was so rewarded when they hoisted then swung him in the air every few feet. He yelled, demanding more and laughing as he did.

Magnus glanced up, grateful to see that the girls had stopped to wait just outside the market gates. Was it really so long ago that he had carried Maggy in this way? How old would Håkan be when they finally had to stop?

* * *

Though Maggy had her own allowance saved up for shopping, she didn’t say no when her parents insisted on treating everybody to soft pretzels and hot chocolate. They sat around one of several rickety tables next to the ice rink, the girls sharing chairs as they talked excitedly about what they would like to buy.

“Ornaments,” declared Shelagh.

“Socks,” Vanessa announced. “Everybody in my family is getting penguin socks for Christmas.”

“Very practical,” said Halla, kindly. “And whimsical.” She smiled at Maggy. “Maggy, what are you looking for?”

Maggy drained her hot chocolate and was about to answer when her face froze. “Uh…”

Magnus turned to look in the direction in which she was staring. A handsome, tall man  approaching their table with a handsome, not quite as tall boy.

“Magnus!” The man offered his hand for a hearty shake, grinning when Magnus stood and returned it. “Nice to see you.”

“Kenric,” said Magnus. He nodded at Halla, who sat with Håkan in her lap. “Käraste, this is Kenric Greenleaf. And this is his son, Jaden, who is in the sixth grade at Håkan’s school.”

“Of course!” Halla nodded, then jiggled the little boy in her lap. “Håkan, say hi to Mr. Greenleaf and Jaden.”

“HI!” Håkan grinned, then promptly stuck his face back in his cup of hot chocolate.

“And you’ve met our daughter Maggy, yes?” Halla glanced at Maggy who, in addition to looking mortified, had a smear of whipped cream on her upper lip.

“Maggy?” Katy whispered to her best friend. “You’ve got…”

At once, Halla and Katy offered Maggy a napkin. She gasped, realizing why they were all of a sudden coming at her with paper products, grabbed at them then wiped her face.

“Hi,” she said quietly, glancing nervously at Halla.

“Well, Jaden and I…” When Jaden groaned, Kenric shook his head and started again. “I’ve got some Bulls swag over at our tent. I don’t suppose any of you are interested in some free mittens and hats?”

“We’d love some, thanks.” Magnus accepted on their behalf, then hung back as they got themselves together for the short walk to the little tent.

He watched them, Maggy and her friends, and Jaden, who had some friends with him, as they pointedly ignored each other but did not break company. The boys horsed around with miniature red and white basketballs, and when one of the basketballs rolled into the girls’ midst, the two groups began to play.

“They look like they’re having fun,” Halla said, interrupting his reverie. In her arms, she carried Håkan, who now wore a red knit hat with two felt horns on top.

Magnus nodded. “They’re good children.”

Halla leaned against Magnus’s side, sighing with satisfaction when he put his arm around her. “Jaden seems nice.”

As Magnus watched them, smiling when he noticed Kenric also keeping a close eye on the children, he thought to himself that Halla was right.

* * *

The little old house on the corner of Shakespeare and Oakley was quiet. It was evening, and Halla was reading to Håkan in his little room. Across the hall, Maggy sat cross-legged on her bed, the day’s haul spread out before her. When Magnus rapped on her door a few times then let himself in, she shrieked and flung herself across the lot.

“Daddy!” She exclaimed. “You can’t just come in here!”

“Sorry!” He held up a mug of tea. “I made an extra tea. Would you like it?”

Maggy shook her head, then smiled. “No thank you.”

“Did I interrupt something important?”

Maggy shook her head. “No, but…” She grimaced. “It’s Christmas presents.”

“My Christmas presents?” Magnus teased.

She snorted. “You have one present. Singular.”

“Is that all?” Magnus pretended to pout.

“Daddy, if you’re not gonna go, then close your eyes. Please!”

Magnus did as he was told, listening to the sounds of Maggy gathering things up. Then the sound of rustling paper as she shoved them into a bag, and put away wrapping paper.

“Maggy?” He asked, eyes still closed.

“Yeah, Daddy?” She walked around on top of her bed, the mattress squeaking under her feet as she did.

“That Jaden fellow is nice.”

“Um… okay.” The footsteps stopped.

“You know, if you want to invite him over to play…”

“Da-ad. I can’t invite him over to play.”

“His father was nice. Perhaps we could invite them over for dinner.”

“Daddy, no!”

“But Maggy, don’t you…”

“Daddy.”

“Don’t you…”

“Daddy!”

“Don’t you like him?”

“DADDY.”

Magnus opened his eyes to find Maggy staring at him. She looked appalled.

“Well?” He asked softly.

Maggy’s brow furrowed. She fidgeted, but did not avoid his gaze. “He’s… okay.”

“Just okay?”

Maggy nodded. “Yeah.”

Magnus decided to leave it. Instead he looked at her, noting that while she still had the round, rosy cheeks and wild black curls she’d had since birth, she was noticeably taller. Almost gangly, and sometimes a little awkward. He sighed.

“Are you okay, Daddy?” Maggy asked, voice calmer now.

“Yes, Magnolia.”

Magnus was surprised when she walked to the edge of the bed, then hugged him tight. He returned the embrace, holding her tightly while he kissed the top of her head.

“You’re getting so tall,” he said. “Nanny and Poppa aren’t going to recognize you when we see them next week.”

“Yes, they will,” said Maggy petulantly. She smiled up at him. “I’m their only granddaughter.”

“You’re their best granddaughter,” affirmed Magnus. “And the best daughter.”

“I know it,” laughed Maggy. She hugged him again. “I got it from my dad.”

“Oh Maggy…” he said, stifling a sob.

“So can I stay up late?” She asked.

“Opportunist!”

Magnus took her by the shoulders and shook her, laughing when she collapsed in a fit of giggles on her bed. She sat up and grinned.

“Can I?”

Magnus sighed. “Lights out at 11:00, okay?”

“Thanks, Daddy.”

Magnus turned to go, and was about to close her door behind him when she stopped him. “Wait!” Maggy cried.

Magnus turned back to find Maggy standing on her bed again. She pointed at the top of her doorway, from which hung a sprig of mistletoe. When Magnus smiled, she hopped off the bed and over to him so he could kiss the top of her head again.

“Good night,” Magnus whispered.  _ “Godnatt, Duva.” _

Later Halla found Magnus in their bedroom, lying on their bed and staring at the ceiling. She joined him, crawling up his side so she could lay herself across him.

“It was a good day, wasn’t it, love?” She yawned.

“Let’s have another baby,” said Magnus firmly.

“It wasn’t  _ that _ good!” Halla laughed when Magnus rolled her onto her back, groaning under his weight when he got on top of her.

“I’m serious,” he murmured, sucking on her earlobe. “Maggy is eleven going on twenty-one, and Håkan is right behind her.”

“He’s three, Magnus.” Halla gasped when he began to suck on her neck. “Oh dear…”

“We should get on it, so Håkan and the baby are close enough in age they can play together.”

“Assuming I can even get pregnant,” Halla mused.

“We’ll figure it out.” Magnus raised his head, smiling when Halla lifted her head to kiss him. “Can we practice a few times, just in case?”

“Ass!” Halla began to tickle him, grabbing him at the waist then tugging his shirt up and off him.

“They’re growing up fast, Halla.” Magnus said. “Too fast.”

“I know,” Halla breathed. “But aren’t we lucky? To have them? To be their parents?”

“I’d say so,” replied Magnus.

“I know so.” Halla breathed deeply. “So what was it you were saying about practice?”

Magnus kissed her, suddenly and ardently, and he took her breath away. “As my love insists.”


End file.
